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Month: December 2016

Press Release For Immediate Release

Investigator K. Bauman | Public Information Officer | 817-427-7014

On December 24, 2016 at approximately 2:26 PM, emergency personnel responded to a motor vehicle crash at Mid Cities Boulevard and Smithfield Road. The initial investigation indicates a black 1934 Ford 2 door was traveling eastbound 7900 block Mid Cities Boulevard. A second vehicle, 2008 Yamaha motorcycle was traveling in the same direction, attempting to pass in the left lane. For an unknown reason, the Ford lost control and struck the motorcycle. The two vehicles collided and the motorcyclist did not survive his injuries.

The driver of the Ford 2 door, a 63 year old male from North Richland Hills Texas was transported to an area hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation, and the name of the deceased is being withheld until the family can be notified.

With recent events, I felt it was timely and important to discuss the impact of suicide on the survivors, such as friends, siblings, parents, and children.

(I want to note that, as of the time of this writing, the cause of death for Mr. Loncar is undetermined. I’m not privy to exclusive information and I’m not any more informed about what happened that the public in general. The incident was simply the catalyst for writing this article.)

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Suicide is tragic for everyone involved. We can all agree that it is terrible that someone can reach a point that their ability to cope has been exceeded and they believe the only escape is suicide. But suicide has significant direct and indirect impact on others as well.

People mourning a friend or family who committed suicide, or died suddenly, are 65% more likely to attempt suicide. 80% are more likely to drop out of school or quit work.

Children (< 18) who lose a parent to suicide at an early age are three times more likely to commit suicide. They are also twice as likely to be hospitalized for depression and this applies to other family members as well.

Parents who lose a child to suicide have double the rate of depression for the two years after the death. They also have a 40% increase in anxiety disorders and a 60% increases in other disorders.

“Suicide contagion” is also very real. Analysis shows that at least 5% of youth suicides were influenced by the suicide of someone else, even when they weren’t well known by the person whether someone else at school, work, or a famous person. Some studies showed up to a 12% rise. In one incident, where a fictional subject on a soap opera committed suicide by overdose of acetaminophen, there was a 17% uptick of attempts of real world suicide by overdose using acetaminophen the following week.

Not only are there mental consequences but there are physical consequences as well. Incidents of cardiovascular disease, COPD, high blood pressure, and diabetes all go up. They are 18% more likely to get a divorce. Even that divorce can trigger suicide rates three times higher than average.

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As we can see, suicide has a significant impact on everyone and lasting effects on the people left behind. During these hard times, keep an eye on your loved ones for signs that they aren’t coping well. Here is an easy mnemonic device to help you remember what to look for:

Here’s an easy-to-remember mnemonic:

IS PATH WARM?

I IdeationS Substance Abuse

P PurposelessnessA AnxietyT TrappedH Hopelessness

W WithdrawalA AngerR RecklessnessM Mood Changes

As always, we’re here to help and if there is something we, or I, can do to help please don’t hesitate to call us at 911 in an emergency, 817-427-1000 in a non-emergency, or call my office directly at 817-427-7092.

MedReturn Drug Drop Box

Beginning December 19th, 2016, North Richland Hills police department will now provide our community with a safe, effective, and convenient way to dispose of unwanted prescription or non-prescription medications 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

For over five years the department has been a host site for the DEA’s drug take back program, collecting and destroying thousands of pounds of unwanted medications. While still participating in this program, our new drop box will now provide our citizens with a much more convenient and timely method of removing dangerous medications from the home.

Prescription drug abuse has proven to be among the top concerns of parents and law enforcement alike. More than 70 percent of young people abusing prescription medications do so from their own homes. An effective prevention strategy begins with limiting and eliminating access to dangerous prescription medications in the home.

As a proactive measure, the new medication drop box has been installed in the department’s jail lobby. The drop box be will available to the public 24/7 and provide a geographically convenient location for citizens to discard dangerous and abuse prone substances otherwise stored in the home.

The drop box was provided free of charge to the citizens of North Richland Hills through our partnership with the Challenge of Tarrant County www.challengetc.org and our mutual support of united goals in preventing drug abuse. Our disposal site will soon be added in the national registry of drop sites available at www.MedReturn.com

Press Release

On December 13, 2016 at approximately 6:13 PM, emergency personnel responded to a motor vehicle crash in the 8000 block Boulevard 26. The initial investigation indicates a 2016 Chevy Cruz was traveling eastbound Birchwood Drive attempting to cross Boulevard 26. As the vehicle crossed into the northbound lanes of traffic, it was struck by a Ford F150. The Chevy Cruz came to rest on the east side of the roadway and became engulfed in flames. The impact caused the Ford F150 to continue traveling into the southbound lanes of traffic, striking a black Lexus 4 door that was stopped due to heavy traffic.

Two occupants of the Chevy Cruz (driver; male, 22 years of age of NRH and front passenger; female, 25 years of age of Keller) were able to escape from the vehicle. Both individuals were transported by ground ambulance to an area hospital. The rear passenger (identified as Melissa Dawn Mitchem, female 25 years of age of Fort Worth) sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased at the scene.

The driver of the Ford F150 (male, 31 years of age of Colleyville) and the Lexus (male, 26 years of age of Fort Worth) were uninjured. The cause of the crash is still under investigation at this time.

Press Release For Immediate Release

On December 13, 2016 at approximately 6:13 PM, emergency personnel responded to a motor vehicle crash in the 8000 block Boulevard 26. The initial investigation indicates a 2016 Chevy Cruz was traveling eastbound Birchwood Drive attempting to cross Boulevard 26. As the vehicle crossed into the northbound lanes of traffic, it was struck by a Ford F150. The Chevy Cruz came to rest on the east side of the roadway and became engulfed in flames. The impact caused the Ford F150 to continue travelling into the southbound lanes of traffic, striking a black Lexus 4 door that was stopped due to heavy traffic.
Two occupants of the Chevy Cruz were able to escape from the vehicle and were transported by ground ambulance to an area hospital. A third occupant sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver of the Ford F150 (male, 31 years of age, of Colleyville) and the Lexus (male, 26 years of age, of Fort Worth) were uninjured.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation and the name of the deceased is being withheld until family has been notified.

Press Release For Immediate Release

On December 10, 2016 at approximately 9:00 PM, emergency personnel responded to a motor vehicle crash at Davis Boulevard and Emerald Hills Way. The initial investigation indicates a GMC Sierra pickup was traveling northbound Davis Boulevard approaching Emerald Hills Way. A second vehicle, Jeep Wrangler was southbound attempting to turn left onto Emerald Hills Way. The two vehicles collided in the intersection, and the driver of the Jeep was ejected from his vehicle and did not survive his injuries.

The two occupants of the GMC Sierra, a 25 year old male and a 62 year old male both from North Richland Hills Texas were transported to an area hospital by ground ambulance with non-life threatening injuries.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation, and the name of the deceased is being withheld until family notifications have been made.

How masculinity affects mental health treatment:

Men are 3.5x more successful at suicide than women, typically because of the methods used. However, it’s the stigmas involved with mental illness that keep men from reaching out for help.

Men are generally raised with the idea that showing emotion isn’t what boys do and they are expected to fight through it or simply “get up, rub some dirt on it, and get moving.” Men are expected to be strong all the time.

Because of this, men don’t often seek the help they need when dealing with an issue. They sometimes won’t even reach out to friends for help because that’s just not what men do. Men are expected to be self-reliant and needing help is sometimes seen as a sign of weakness.

Because of this, reaching out for help is difficult and stigmatized as being a wimp but getting help could also clearly be seen as the very bold step.

If you, or a man in your life, needs help dealing with depression or any other mental illness, http://headsupguys.org/ is an online resource with tips and resources to help men deal with what they are facing. http://www.realwarriors.net/ is an online resource for those men AND women who served in the military and need assistance dealing with the “invisible wounds” they brought home.